Apparatus for processing heat-decomposable non-gaseous materials

ABSTRACT

METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR PROCESSING HEAT DECOMPOSABLE LIQUIDS OR SOLID MATERIALS, SUCH AS INDUSTRIAL AND MUNCIPAL WASTES, WHEREIN THE MATERIALS ARE HEATED DIRECTLY BY CONVECTION AND PREFERABLY ALSO BY RADIATION FROM AN OPEN FLAME TO EFFECT PYROLYSIS. MEANS ARE DISCLOSED FOR ASSISTING IN THE TRANSFER BY CONDUCTION OF ADDITIONAL HEAT ENERGY TO THE MATERIALS BEING PROCESSED, AND TO EFFECT COMBUSTION OF A PORTION OF THE DECOMPOSITION GASES PRODUCED   BY PYROLYSIS AS THE DECOMPOSTION GASES ARE FORMED. A SEPARATE CHAMBER IS PROVIDED FOR COMPLETE OXIDATION OF DECOMPOSITION GASES WHICH ARE NOT OXIDIZED AS FORMED. ALSO DISCLOSED IS A SYSTEM FOR HANDLING QUENCH, WASHER, AND SPRAY TOWER LIQUID TO AVOID ANY LIQUID WASTE BEING DISCHARGED TO THE SEWER AND TO AVOID THE FORMATION OF A STEAM PLUME FROM THE APPARATUS.

Feb. 26, 1974 B|ELSKI ETAL 3,794,565

APPARATUS FOR PROCESSING HEATDECOMPOSABLE NON'GASEOUS MATERIALS Filed Dec. 22, 1971 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 RECE8IVING STORAGE IO SHREDDER l STORAGE Ia sol. s 50 'lD OFF GAS PYROLYSIS v AIR 241/ CHAMBER FLAME 62 s2 PuRIFIER If 96 94 FUEL Ffi I08 AIR AIR QuENcI-I l 4E A R PREI-IEATER BASIN 9 STEAM I II 98 72 I 1 I00 l22\ GAS l|4 MAGNETIC WATER SCRUBBER 61/) SEPARATOR 76 H6 II5 w f WATER L 10A V./' 7 I V FAN I CLARIFIER WASHER I24 -GASSES TO WET IRoN ATMOSPHERE REsIDI E 1 INVENTORS EDWARD T. 'BIELSKI DARYL L. LACKEY RUSSELL V. THEISS BY fm y ATTORNEY Feb. 26, 1974 E. T. BIELSKI ETAL APPARATUS FOR PROCESSING HEAT-DECOMPOSABLE NON-GASEOUS MATERIALS 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Dec. 22. 1971 EwEEdJU l O.

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INVENTORS EDWARD T. BIELSKI DARYL L. LACKEY RUSSELL V. THEISS ATTORNEY Feb. 26, 1974 E. 1-. BIELSKI ETAL 3,794,565

APPARATUS FOR PROCESSING HEAT-DECOMPOSABLE NON-GASEOUS MATERIALS 22. 1971 3 Sheets-Sheet Filed Dec;

INVENTORS s Y m M n m. R l C O B V T Q. T T L D L L 0 A R A mww W R U D A R ED United States Patent US. Cl. 202-100 18 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE Method and apparatus for processing heat decomposable liquids or solid materials, such as industrial and municipal wastes, wherein the materials are heated directly by convection and preferably also by radiation from an open flame to eflect pyrolysis. Means are disclosed for assisting in the transfer by conduction of additional heat energy to the materials being processed, and to eifect combustion of a portion of the decomposition gases produced by pyrolysis as the decomposition gases are formed. A separate chamber is provided for complete oxidation of decomposition gases which are not oxidized as formed. Also disclosed is a system for handling quench, washer, and spray tower liquids to avoid any liquid waste being discharged to the sewer and to avoid the formation of a steam plume from the apparatus.

This application is a continuation-in-part of co-pending application Ser. No. 54,495, filed July 13, 1970, and now abandoned.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION (1) Field of the invention The disposal of liquid and solid wastes constitutes a problem which has received much serious attention in recent years. Not only can disposal of such waste in an improper manner detract from the beauty of our surroundings but improper disposal can also result in pollution of lakes and streams and/or the creation of unsafe and undesirable land areas.

One widely employed method for the disposal of solid wastes comprises the so-called land-fill procedure in which the wastes are mixed with a certain amount of dirt and eventually covered over with a layer of top soil. It is now recognized, however, that land-fill procedures as widely employed in many areas are not completely safe and do not produce land areas in many instances which can be put to immediate commercial use. Further, the areas available for land-fill in many sections of the country have largely been depleted.

As an alternative to disposing of wastes by land-fill, it has been the practice in some areas to incinerate such wastes in forced air incinerators. Incineration, however, has the disadvantage that it necessitates the handling of large volume of gases and as generally practiced, normally results in objectionable air pollution. Removal of the pollutants from these gases is difficult and costly due in part to the nature of the combustion products found in these gases, but largely volume of gases which must be handled.

Because of the disadvantages of land-fill and the like operations and of incinerating liquid or solid wastes, eiforts have been made for many years to develop a pyrolysis method and apparatus for treating solid and liquid wastes. Pyrolysis has the theoretical advantage that waste disposal process can be made substantially odor-free, the advantage that there need be substantially no smoke pollution associated with pyrolysis and the advantage that the solid residue can be non-putrifiable and non-patrogenic and additionally can be substantially odor-free.

(2) Description of the prior art In spite of the theoretical advantages of pyrolysis as a method for solid and liquid waste disposal, no pyrolysis stream or apparatus has achieved widespread commercial use primarily, it is believed, because of heat transfer problems associated with pyrolysis and the difficulties of obtaining odor-free end products without encountering objectionable slagging in the pyrolysis chamber. If the temperature in the pyrolysis chamber is allowed to rise above a relatively critical upper limit, glass and other inorganic materials may be melted to form a slag which tends to adhere tenaciously to any surface upon which it is permitted to solidify and yet if the decomposition products are not heated to a temperature which may approach the temperature at which slagging is encountered, the products may not be odor-free.

Partially to avoid the problem of slagging, most prior art procedures for pyrolysis have involved indirect heating of the material to be pyrolyzed in a pyrolysis chamber made of heat conductible material such as stainless steel. By this means the walls of the pyrolysis chamber are heated and conduct heat to the waste materials inside the chamber so that the Walls are at all times at least as hot as the waste materials in the pyrolysis chamber and any slag which is formed within the chamber is prevented from solidifying upon the pyrolysis chamber walls. The disadvantages of such apparatus will, however, be readily apparent to those skilled in the art and include heat trans fer problems, corrosion problems of a serious nature, and the problems in many instances of handling molten inorganic materials.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In accordance with applicants invention, the problems associated with prior art pyrolysis apparatus are overcome by apparatus in which the material to be pyrolyzed is heated by convection by contact with the combustion gases resulting from a burner or the like and preferably are additionally heated by direct radiation from a flame produced by the burner. Provision is also made for the material being treated to be agitated by heat conducting members so that additional heat transfer to the material is obtained by conduction. In accordance with this invention, it has also been found possible in many instances to oxidize part of the decomposition gases as they are formed and this provides additional heat energy for supporting the endothermic pyrolysis reaction. All gases are thereafter removed from the pyrolysis chamber and processed in a flame purifier where the temperature can be raised to a point high enough to insure an odor-free oif-gas and where all combustible components of the off-gases can be fully oxidized.

The invention also provides apparatus for handling solid residue from the pyrolysis chamber such that it is rapidly cooled to a suitable temperature for further handling, thus permitting iron components to be removed magnetically if desired and the remaining components, which comprise primarily non-magnetic metals, inorganics, and elemental carbon, to be further processed or discarded. Other advantages and features of the process and apparatus will be apparent from the description of preferred embodiments thereof which follows.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING The invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of pyrolysis apparatus in accordance with this invention designed primarily for the 3 processing of solid heat-decomposable materials with this invention,

FIG. 2 is a largely schematic view partially in section of the pyrolysis chamber and several other apparatus components illustrated schematically in FIG. 1,

FIG. 3 is a schematic view in section of the pyrolysis chamber showing one embodiment of the arrangement and structures of the heat conductive protruding members, and

FIG. 4 shows some of the various forms the heat conducti-ve protruding members may take.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS With reference to the drawings in greater detail and with particular reference to FIG. 1 thereof, the reference numeral indicates a receiving and storage area or receptacle for receiving solid heat-decomposable materials, such as municipal trash or garbage, to be processed in accordance with this invention. The receiving receptacle or the like can be of conventional design and, for example, can constitute a metal hopper or concrete pit, or plurality thereof, arranged with one rim at or near surface level so that trucks bringing material to the site for processing can be readily unloaded into the hopper or hoppers.

From storage receptacle 10, material to be processed is transported by a conveyor means 12 to a shredder 14. Both conveyor means 12 and shredder 14 can be of conventional design and suitable equipment is readily available upon the open market. For example, conveyor 12 can suitably be a belt conveyor or a drag chain conveyor such as is conventionally employed for transporting materials in a continuous manner and shredder 14 can suitably be a shredder such as is presently employed commercially for the shredding of junked automobile bodies and other solid wastes. The only requirement of shredder 14 is that it divide the solid material into pieces or chunks such that it can readily be handled and economically heated to a pyrolysis temperature. Dividing the solid material into chunks or pieces such that it has a mean particle size (particle size being defined as the maximum dimension of the particle) of not more than about 4 inches to 8 inches is usually satisfactory, although appreciably better results are obtained if the mean particle size is not more than about 2 inches to 3 inches. At the other extreme, the mean particle size should be at least V inch and is preferably at least ,4 inch.

Shredded solids from shredder 14 are conveyed by any suitable conveyor means 16 to a storage silo 18 which can be of any suitable design and, for example, can constitute a cylindrical bin or a cylindrical bin with a conical bottom. Preferably, the storage silo 18 is provided with conventional means, not illustrated, to insure uniform flow from the silo. Storage silo 18 is advantageously present in the system to insure a constant supply of solids so that the system can be operated on a continuous twentyfour hour basis even during periods when delivery of solids to the site of the apparatus is temporarily interrupted.

From storage silo 18, the solid material is conveyed by conventional conveyor means, schematically illustrated at 20 in FIG. 1 of the drawings, to a ram feeder 22 (see FIG. 2 of the drawings) from which it is fed into a rotary pyrolysis chamber generally indicated by the reference numeral 24. Ram feeder 22 will subsequently be described in greater detail.

Pyrolysis chamber 24, in accordance with the preferred illustrated embodiment, generally resembles a conventional rotary kiln, the main body of which comprises a rotary tubular member 26 which is lined with refractory material 28. Tubular member 26 is inclined with respect to the horizontal such that when solids are fed to the upper end of the tubular member 26, rotation thereof in conjunction with the force of gravity causes the solids to move from the upper end of the tubular member 26 and out the lower end thereof. The tubular member 26 may optionally be provided with a generally annular flange 30 to prevent solids fed to the upper end of the member 26 from falling out. To complete the necessary means for moving material through the tubular member 26 and for moving the solid residue out of the lower end thereof, an electric motor 32 and a gear train 34 are provided for operatively rotating the tubular member 26.

The upper end of tubular member 26 extends into a stationary feed hood 36 which serves to prevent the uncontrolled entry of air into and the escape of gases from the pyrolysis chamber. Sliding contact of the hood 36 with the tubular member 26 is made through a seal member 38 which can be conventional in design and which can be formed of any suitable heat resistant material such as, for example, asbestos. Feed hood 36 is provided with an opening 40 through which solids are fed to the pyrolysis chamber by ram feeder 22 and an opening 42 through which decomposition gases are removed from the hood. To make certain that there is no collection of explosive gases within feed hood 36, igniter means comprising a plurality of pilot burners, two of which are shown at 44 and 46, extend through the outer periphery of feed hood 36 and operatively provide a pilot flame within the hood at all times.

With reference in greater detail to ram feeder 22, this component of the apparatus comprises an upstanding feed tube 48 to receive solids from conveyor 20 and storage silo 18, and a generally horizontally disposed chamber 50 within which reciprocates an elongated piston 52. The length of piston 52 and its movement are such that it alternately allows solids to fall from upstanding feed tube 22 into chamber 50 and forces the solids which have fallen into chamber 50 toward one end of chamber 50 which extends through opening 40 in feed hood 36. The length of the piston stroke relative to the length of chamber 50 is such that a compacted plug of solids, illustrated at 54, always remains within chamber 50 and prevents the uncontrolled admission of air to the pyrolysis chamber or the escape of decomposition gases from the pyrolysis chamber. The reciprocation of piston 52 can be effected by any conventional means, not illustrated.

The lower end of rotary tubular member 26 extends into a firing hood 56 which is a stationary member generally corresponding to feed hood 36. A gas seal 58, generally similar to seal 38, is provided to prevent the entry of unwanted air into pyrolysis chamber 24, and extending through hood 56 is a large burner 60 which is supplied with any suitable fuel, such as natural gas, through a conduit 62 and which is so disposed that an open flame 64 operatively produced by burner 60 is directed in an unrestricted, spaced relationship with solid materials being pyrolyzed in the pyrolysis chamber and such that hot combustion gases from the flame are brought into intimate contact with the solid material being processed in the pyrolysis chamber 24. In one embodiment, the open flame 64 may be directed away from the bed of solid material and toward the wall of the refractory material 28 at some point along the length of pyrolysis chamber 24. It will be seen, therefore, that the solid materials are operatively heated by direct radiation from the flame and by convection from the hot combustion gases generated by the flame 64.

Disposed within rotary tubular member 26 and extending in a generally radial direction from the internal surface thereof are a plurality of heat-conductive, protruding members 66 which may be formed from any suitable heat-resistant and heat-conductive material such as a heatresistant stainless steel. Members 66 serve the dual functions of conveying heat to solid materials being processed within pyrolysis chamber 24 and of agitating the solid materials such that fresh surface is continually exposed to pyrolysis and the solid materials can be more readily heated by convection and radiation. It is an important advantage of the apparatus that members 66 perform these functions without lofting the solid materials to thereby result in the generation of large quantities of suspended small solid particles which have a tendency to become entrained in the off-gases and interfere with the operation of other components of the apparatus. It has been found that members 66 serve to break up or prevent the frankfurter which tends to form in devices of this type when solid waste is tumbled.

Members 66 may suitably be of a wide variety of shapes and sizes but preferably have a length or shape such that they protrude from the inner surface of tubular member 26 a distance equal to from about V to /3 the mean internal diameter of tubular member 26. The cross-sectional shape of members 66 can suitably be square, rectangular, circular, elliptical, oval, or any other suitable shape but the members preferably have their minimum dimension generally parallel to the longitudinal axis of tubular member 26 so that they can eifect a knifing or separating action on solids within the chamber 24 which operates in conjunction with the rotary motion of chamber 24 to effect agitation without lofting.

In FIG. 2 members 66 are portrayed as spike-like members but may be cylindrical as shown in FIG. 4. Two other shapes are shown, 66A and 668, in FIG. 4. Member 66A is blade shaped with a face disposed at an angle to the lateral axis of tubular member 26 so that they provide a propulsive action on solids in chamber 24. Member 66B is wicket-like and again is preferably disposed at an angle to the lateral axis of tubular member 26.

Depending from firing hood 56 is a delivery chute 68 for a delivering a hot solid residue from pyrolysis chamber 24 to a quench resin 70. Quench basin 70 is operatively filled with an aqueous liquid such as water to a level slightly above the lower end of chute 68 to thereby provide a liquid seal which prevents air from entering delivery chute 68 from which it would otherwise enter pyrolysis chamber 24. It also serves to prevent at least a large part of the steam generated by contact of the hot residue with the aqueous liquid from passing into pyrolysis chamber 24. Quench basin 70 is operatively associated with a conveyor 72 which may suitably be, for example, a screw conveyor or a drag conveyor and which is driven by a suitable motor illustrated at 74. The shape of quench basin 70 in relation to the inclination to the horizontal of conveyor 72 is such that both the solids that float on the surface of the aqueous liquid in basin 70 and the solids which sink to the bottom of basin 70 are re moved from the basin while allowing liquid to drain from the collected solids and to return along the bottom of the conveyor housing to basin 70.

From conveyor 72, the residual solids from the pyrolysis chamber are passed to a magnetic separator 76 which can be of conventional design and which serves the purpose of removing for salvage magnetic metals from the solid residue. The magentic metals recovered by separator 76 are washed in a conventional design washer 78 to remove the remaining traces of non-magnetic pyrolysis residue. The non-magnetic residue from separator 76 is either sold for end use applications where its various components can be utilized (as is or after recovery) or else is trucked to a suitable disposal area. Useful components of the non-magnetic residue include carbonaceous mateterial, glassy aggregate, various non-ferrous metals, etc.

The mixture of combustion gases and gaseous decomposition products generated within pyrolysis chamber 24 pass from the chamber through opening 42 in feed hood 36 and are conveyed by a conduit 80 to a flame purifier generally indicated by the reference numeral 82. Removal of these gases from the pyrolysis chamber 24 is effected by exhaust means 106 which is shown in FIG. 2 as placed immediately prior to discharge of the purified gases to the atmosphere. Any exhaust means placed anywhere down-steam (in respect to gas flow) of the pyrolysis chamber 24 can be used.

Flame purifier 82 comprises a generally cylindrical member 84 having an internal cavity 86 within which is disposed baflle means comprising a plurality of baflie members 88 which serve to increase the length of the gas flow path within cylindrical member 84 and to induce turbulence in the gas flow. Conduit means 90 are provided for introducing into flame purifier 82 a controlled amount of an oxygen containing gas such as air, and igniter means, illustrated as comprising a burner 92, is provided for producing a flame within flame purifier 82 at or near the point where air entering the purifier through conduit means 90 is mixed with the gases from pyrolysis chamber 24 entering the purifier through conduit 80. Both conduit means 90 and conduit preferably provide tangential entry into cavity 86 to increase turbulence and promote rapid mixing of the air entering through conduit means and the off-gases entering through conduit 80. Burner 92 not only serves to ignite the mixture of gases should its temperature fall below its auto-ignition temperature but can also serve to heat the gases to a proper temperature within flame purifier 82 if so required.

From air purifier 82 the gases operatively flow through a gas exit port into a conduit means 94 and to an air preheater generally indicated by the reference numeral 96 which is for the purpose of recovering sensible heat from the hot gases exiting flame purifier 82. Any suitable commercially available gas heat exchanger can be employed for air preheater 96.

From air preheater 96 the cooled gases are passed through a conduit 98 to a gas scrubber tower generally indicated by the reference numeral 100. Scrubber 100 can be of conventional design and is illustrated as comprising a plurality of water sprays 102 through which the gases from conduit 98 are passed in countercurrent flow. From scrubber 100 the oif-gases are passed through a conduit 104 to an exhaust fan 106 through which they are discharged to the atmosphere.

The hot air produced by air preheater 96 can be employed for a number of purposes but at least part of the hot air is preferably ducted through a conduit 108 to burner 60 to provide preheated combustion air for the burner. Conduit 108 is also directly connected to the interior of firing hood 56 through a valve 110 so that if desired, controlled quantities of preheated air, in addition to that introduced into pyrolysis chamber 24 through burner 60, can be introduced by operation of valve 110. If desired, hot air from air preheater 96 can also be used to provide the air necessary for operation of burners 92, 44, and 46, or by means of a conduit 11 (see FIG. 1), a portion of the preheated air can be introduced into the gases leaving fan 106 to raise the temperature of the gases well above the dew point thereby avoiding the possible formation of a steam plume.

It is an advantage of apparatus in accordance with this invention that it can be so constructed as to avoid any discharge of liquids to the sewer thereby avoiding the usual problems with the discharge of hot liquids. To achieve this result, a clarifier generally indicated by the reference numeral 112, is provided for separating entrained solids from liquids by decantation and at least a portion of the water collected from sprays 102 in gas scrubber 100 is passed through a conduit 114 to clarifier 112 where solids are removed. Water relatively low in suspended solids from clarifier 112 is then added by means of a conduit 115 to water in a conduit 116 being circulated through gas scrubber 100. If necessary, makeup water suflicient to maintain a satisfactory liquid level in clarifier 112, can be introduced to the system through gas scrubber 100 by means of a conduit 118. Clarifier 112 can also serve to receive waste liquids from washer 78.

It has been found that the water in quench basin 70 tends to become somewhat basic and in accordance with one embodiment of the invention, a bleed line 122 is provided between quench basin 70 and clarifier 112 so that the basicity of liquid in the quench basin can be maintained at a relatively low level if desired. This may be desirable in many instances, not only to control the characteristics of the solid residue but also to raise the pH of the water being circulated through gas scrubber 100 which tends to become acidic because of the presence in the pyrolysis ofl-gases of acids and acid anhydrids generated during pyrolysis. Solids from clarifier 112 are transported as an aqueous slurry to quencher 70 through a conduit 124. In fact, the sole supply of liquid to quench basin 70 can be by means of conduit 124 because the slurry concentration is of little or no importance as long as the solids content of the slurry does not rise above the point, usually about 85 percent, where handling of the slurry becomes difiicult, and one can simply adjust the liquid flow through conduit 124 to maintain the proper level in quench basin 70 whether or not bleed line 122 is in operation. There is, of course, considerable loss of liquid from quench basin 70 because steam is generated as the hot solids residue from pyrolysis chamber 24 enters the basin and because the quenched residue is removed wet from the basin. To avoid release to the atmosphere of steam generated in quench basin 70, a conduit 126 is provided for transporting the steam to gas scrubber 100 where it is condensed and the resulting mist droplets removed.

In operation, solid heat-decomposable material, shredded as previously described to a suitable particle size, is fed in a relatively continuous manner to the upstanding feed tube 48 of ram feeder 22 and is forced into pyrolysis chamber 24 by reciprocation of piston 52. The most advantageous rate of feed in terms of pounds per hour depends upon a number of variables, the most im portant of which is the size of the pyrolysis chamber and primarily its cross-sectional area. Although there is no minimum rate at which material can be fed to a pyrolysis chamber of any size except a limit which may be dictated by economics, there is a maximum practical feed rate in that the rate of feed should not be so high as to result in any cross-sectional segment of the pyrolysis chamber being more than 50 percent filled with solids being processed and preferably at no point along its length should the tubular member 26 be more than about percent filled with waste solids.

Within the limits of the equipment, the rate of feed should be correlated with the B.t.u. input from burner 60 and with the amount of air introduced into the pyrolysis chamber, if any, in excess of that required for the proper combustion of the fuel fed to burner 60, to provide for the material fed to the pyrolysis chamber being heated to the temperature necessary to achieve the desired degree of pyrolysis and to result in the off-gases from the pyrolysis chamber being at the most advantageous temperature. When used for the treatment of solid municipal wastes, the process variables should be correlated such that the solid residue from pyrolysis at no time reaches a temperature above 2200" F. because if the temperature is allowed to go above this value, it results in the formation of excessive quantities of slag within the pyrolysis chamber. Generally, the temperature of the residue should not be allowed to go above 2000" F. as a safety factor with the preferred temperature range for waste treatment being from 15 00 F. to 1900 F. This is not to say, however, that such high temperatures are required to achieve any degree of pyrolysis and, in fact, the pyrolysis chamber can be operated such that the wastes achieve a maximum temperature of not more than 500 F. to 600 F. and even at these relatively low temperatures, substantial pyrolysis is obtained.

Although of less importance than the temperature of the materials being pyrolyzed in the pyrolysis chamber, the temperature of the off-gases exiting the pyrolysis chamber is also an important consideration and process variables if possible should be correlated to provide an off-gas temperature of at least about 500 F. and preferably of at least about 600 F. to avoid excessive condensation of liquefiable components prior to the time that the off-gases reach flame purifier 82. If conditions permit, it is even more desirable to retain the exit temperature of the off-gases as they leave the pyrolysis chamber above their auto-ignition temperature to eliminate any explosion hazard and additionally reduce the need for pilot burners 44 and 46. Except, however, as may be dictated by these considerations, there is no lower temperature limit for the off-gases except that dictated by practicality, and with pilot burners 44 and 46 in operation and with provision for collecting condensed liquids, the unit can be operated with the off-gases at any temperature from the lowest it is possible to obtain with any degree of pyrolysis to the maximum it is possible to obtain with out over-heating the materials being pyrolyzed.

The most advantageous retention time of the material to be pyrolyzed within the pyrolysis chamber will vary depending upon the nature of the feed, the rate of feed, and other factors but is of no great importance as long as the solid residue as it departs from the pyrolysis chamber is at a proper temperature Within the ranges set forth above. Similarly, the extent to which the pyrolysis chamber is filled with material being pyrolyzed is of little importance as long as effective heat transfer is achieved, excessive solids entrainment in the off-gases is avoided, and the solid residue and gaseous products leaving the pyrolysis chamber are at temperatures within acceptable ranges.

As has been previously mentioned, it is permissible to admit air to the pyrolysis chamber in addition to that required to support combustion of the fuel fed to burner 60 and the admission of such excess oxygen to the pyrolysis chamber results in burning of part of the pyrolysis decomposition gases in situ. This is sometimes advantageous to reduce the number of B.t.u.s that must be provided by burner 60 and/or to increase the temperature of the gases leaving the pyrolysis chamber. It has the disadvantage, however, that it increases the gas flow through and from the pyrolysis chamber and this tends to increase entrainment of solid particles in the gas stream from the chamber. If, however, the amount of excess exygen introduced into the chamber is no more than is required to oxidize from about 50 percent to 60 percent of the pyrolysis gases generated within the chamber, satisfactory results can be obtained in most instances and excellent results are generally obtainable when introducing enough excess air to oxidize only from about 5 percent to 40 percent of such gases, particularly if the air is preheated such that it does not reduce the temperature of the pyrolysis. chamber to an objectionable extent. It will be understood that pyrolysis differs from incineration in that pyrolysis is an endothermic reaction requiring a substantial heat input whereas incineration normally results in the generation of heat, and because of this difference, the introduction of cold air into the pyrolysis chamber is not advantageous as it sometimes is in an incineration process.

One function of flame purifier 82 is to insure that no combustible gases are released to the atmosphere and in view of this it will be apparent that at least sufiicient air should be fed through conduit to insure the complete burning of all combustible gases received by the flame purifier through conduit 80 from pyrolysis chamber 24. In actual practice it is advantageous to use an excess of air, for example, from 10 percent to percent excess over that required to burn all combustible gases received by the flame purifier since this avoids the necessity of precisely monitoring the gas flows to make certain that a stoichiometric equivalent of oxygen is present at all times. In many instances the use of excess air is advantageous for the additional reason that it insures temperatures in the flame purifier below the temperature at which damage to the interior lining of the flame purifier results. If desired, even a larger excess of air can be employed and, for example, in most instances a 200 percent to 400 percent excess can be employed with satisfactory results although the use of such a large excess is normally not advantageous for the reason that it unduly increases the volume of gases which must be processed and may require a substantial heat input into the flame purifier from burner 92, particularly if the gases from pyrolysis chamber 24 are diluted to the extent that the resulting mixture will not support combustion.

To insure that the gases released to the atmosphere are odor-free, it is necessary to achieve a temperature of at least about 1200" F. to 1400 F. in the flame purifier and the temperature within the flame purifier is preferably within the range of about 1500 F. to 2500 F. There is no upper limit as to the temperature that can be satisfactorily employed in flame purifier 82 except that dictated by practicality. The use of lining material in flame puri- :fier 82 that will stand temperatures above 2800 F. to 3000" F. is needlessly expensive, and even if such lining is used, it is difficult to achieve temperatures above about 3200" F. to 3500 F. using hydrocarbon gases as fuel. For these reasons, such temperatures constitute practical upper limits.

In normal operation a satisfactory operating temperature can be reached in flame purifier 82 solely as a result of the exothermic combustion of the off-gases from pyrolysis chamber 24 so that burner 92 serves merely as a pilot and no heat input from burner 92 is required for satisfactory operation. If, however, a large excess of cold air is introduced to flame purifier 82 through conduit 90 or if the off-gases from the pyrolysis chamber entering flame purifier 82 through conduit 80 are deficient in combustible components, it is necessary that burner 92 be operated in such a manner as to provide an operating temperature of at least about 1200 F. to 1400 F. in the flame purifier.

It is believed that the mode of operation of the remaining components of the apparatus has been made clear from the description of the apparatus components themselves or else will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art. As previously mentioned, a number of the apparatus components are items of standard equipment available commercially from several different sources and the mode of operation of such apparatus components is Well known to those skilled in the art.

While the invention has been described specifically with reference to the treatment of a solid pyrolyzable material, it will be understood that any heat-decomposable nongaseous material can be processed. For example, liquid wastes or flowable mixtures of liquid and solid wastes can be readily treated using the process and apparatus of this invention and, in fact, the processing of flowable materials is simpler than the processing of solid materials since there is no need for shredding apparatus or special solids handling equipment and one can simply pump the liquid material or slurry of liquid and solid materials directly into the upper end of rotary tubular member 26. Except for this difference in mode of feeding the equipment, operation can be the same for the processing of a liquid waste or slurry as has been described for the processing of solid materials.

What is claimed is:

1. An apparatus for pyrolyzing heat decomposable nongaseous material comprising in combination an elongated pyrolysis chamber for heating said material to a temperature sufiicient to result in at least partial decomposition thereof, means for introducing said material into one end of said pyrolysis chamber, means for moving said material through said pyrolysis chamber, means for removing a solid residue from the other end of said pyrolysis chamber, gas sealing means for limiting the admission of air to said pyrolysis chamber, exhaust means for withdrawing a mixture of pyrolysis and burner combustion gases from said pyrolysis chamber, a burner disposed adjacent to said other end of said pyrolysis chamber such that hot combustion gases from said burner are brought into intimate contact with said material passing through said pyrolysis chamber, said burner being an open flame burner disposed such that a flame operatively produced by said burner is in unrestricted, spaced relationship with said material so that said material is heated by direct radiation from said flame, and means cooperating with said first-named end of said pyrolysis chamber to collect a mixture of combustion gases from said burner and decomposition gases from said material, said pyrolysis chamber comprising a rotatable, refractory lined generally tubular member operatively inclined to the horizontal such that said material is caused to move lengthwise of said pyrolysis chamber by the force of gravity when said pyrolysis chamber is rotated, and including a plurality of agitating heat conductive members projecting from the interior surface of said tubular member, said agitating heat conductive members having their minimum dimension generally parallel to the longitudinal axis of said tubular member such that as said tubular member is rotated said material is mechanically agitated to thereby effect more intimate contact of said material with said hot combustion gases by eflecting a knifing or separating action on said material.

2. Apparatus according to claim 1 including a feed hood means disposed proximate said first-named end of said pyrolysis chamber and at least one pilot burner disposed within said feed hood means to ignite any combustible mixture of gases which may collect within said feed hood means.

3. Apparatus according to claim 1 including means for introducing a controlled amount of an oxygen containing gas into said other end of said pyrolysis chamber whereby part of the gases produced by decomposition of said heat decomposable non-gaseous material is oxidized within said pyrolysis chamber.

4. Apparatus according to claim 3 including heat exchange means for preheating said oxygen containing gas before it is admitted to said pyrolysis chamber.

5. Apparatus according to claim 1 including (a) flame purifier means removed from said pyrolysis chamber and conduit means for passing gases from said pyrolysis chamber to said flame purifier means, said flame purifier means comprising a combustion chamber having an internal cavity operatively connected with said conduit means, (b) means for introducing an oxygen containing gas such that it is operatively admixed with said gases from said pyrolysis chamber, and (c) igniter means for operatively igniting within said flame purifier means any combustible mixture of gases resulting from said admixing.

6. Apparatus according to claim 5 wherein said flame purifier means comprises a refractory lined elongated combustion chamber, and said igniter means comprises an open flame burner disposed such that a flame operatively produced by said burner is in open contact with a mixture of gases operatively formed by admixture of said oxygen containing gas with said gases from said pyrolysis chamber, said conduit means being operatively connected to said combustion chamber proximate one end thereof, and said combustion chamber having a gas exit port proximate the end thereof remote from the end operatively connected to said conduit means.

7. Apparatus according to claim 6 including bafile means disposed within said combustion chamber for increasing the length of the gas flow path within said combustion chamber and for inducing turbulence in the moving gases.

8. Apparatus according to claim 6 wherein said combustion chamber is a tubular chamber and including means for introducing said oxygen containing gas and said gases from said pyrolysis chamber tangentially to the inner surface of said combustion chamber to thereby increase the turbulence of the gas stream within said chamber.

9. Apparatus according to claim 5 including scrubber means for an aqueous scrubbing of the gases exiting from said flame purifier means before said gases are released to the atmosphere.

10. Apparatus according to claim 6 including air preheater means to operatively effect indirect heat exchange relationship between gases passing from said flame purifier means and air initially at a temperature below the temperature of said gases.

11. Apparatus according to claim 10 including conduit means for introducing at least part of the air operatively heated by said air preheater means into said pyrolysis chamber proximate the end thereof in which'said open flame burner is located to provide at least a portion of said oxygen containing gas.

12. Apparatus according to claim 10 including conduit means for introducing air from said air preheater means into the gases departing said scrubber means to thereby raise the temperature of said gases well above the dew point thereof.

13. Apparatus according to claim 1 including liquid quenching means operatively connected with said pyrolysis chamber to receive hot solid residue from said pyrolysis chamber.

14. Apparatus according to claim 13 including means for introducing said hot solid residue below the liquid level in said quenching means such that the liquid in said quenching means acts as a seal to prevent air from passing into said pyrolysis chamber.

15. Apparatus according to claim 9 including clarifier means for removing suspended solid particles from liquids, conduit means for transporting liquid from said scrubber means to said clarifier means, and conduit means for returning clarified liquid from said clarifier means to said scrubber means.

16. Apparatus according to claim 15 including a quenching means operatively connected with said pyrolysis chamber to receive hot solid residue from said pyrolysis chamber, and conduit means for transporting a slurry of solid particles in liquid from said clarifier means to said quenching means.

17. Apparatus according to claim 16 including means for introducing said hot solid residue below the liquid level in said quenching means such that the liquid in said quenching means acts as a seal to prevent air from passing into said pyrolysis chamber, and means for transporting steam generated in said quenching means to said gas scrubber means to thereby result in condensation of said steam and removal of the resulting mist droplets.

18. An apparatus for pyrolyzing heat decomposable non-gaseous material comprising in combination an elongated pyrolysis chamber for heating said material to a temperature suflicient to result in at least partial decomposition thereof, means for introducing said material into one end of said pyrolysis chamber, means for moving said material through said pyrolysis chamber, means for removing a solid residue from the other end of said pyrolysis chamber, gas sealing means for limiting the admission of air to said pyrolysis chamber, exhaust means for withdrawing a mixture of pyrolysis and burner combustion gases from said pyrolysis chamber, a burner disposed adjacent to said other end of said pyrolysis chamber such that hot combustion gases from said burner are brought into intimate contact with said material passing through said pyrolysis chamber, said burner being an open flame burner disposed such that a flame operatively produced by said burner is in unrestricted, spaced relationship with said material so that said material is heated by direct radiation from said flame, and means cooperating with said first-named end of said pyrolysis chamber to collect a mixture of combustion gases from said burner and decomposition gases from said material, said pyrolysis chamber comprising a rotatable, refractory lined generally tubular member operatively inclined to the horizontal such that said material is caused to move lengthwise of said pyrolysis chamber by the force of gravity when said pyrolysis chamber is rotated, and including a plurality of heat conductive rod members projecting from the interior surface of said tubular member such that as said tubular member is rotated said material is mechanically agitated to thereby effect more intimate contact of said material with said hot combstion gases by eifecting a knifing or separating action on said material.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,306,237 2/1967 Ransom 14 2,171,535 9/1939 Berg et al 1108 A 1,564,730 12/1925 Walden 20133 1,583,436 5/1926 Ackinson 110-14 2,997,426 8/1961 Mansfield 20133 2,274,780 3/1942 Durer et al. 11014 2,213,667 9/1940 Dundas et al. 110--14 NORMAN YUDKOFF, Primary Examiner D. EDWARDS, Assistant Examiner US. Cl. X.R.

1 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION Patent No. 3,794,565 Dated F y 26, 197

Inventor(s) Edward Bieliski 8t 8.1

It is certified that error appears in the above-identified patent and that said Letters Patent are hereby corrected as shown below:

Column 1, line 7, insert after "63141" assignors to Monsanto Enviro-C'hem Systems, Inc., Chicago, Illinois, a Delaware corporation Column 2, line 2, cancel "patrogenic" and insert in its place pathogenic Column 6, line #9, cancel "conduit 11" and insert in its place conduit lll Column 8, line #1, cancel "exyand insert in its place oxy- Signed and sealed this 30th day of .July 1971.

(SEAL) Attest:

"McCOY M. GIBSON, JR. C. MARSHALL DANN Attesting Officer I Commissioner of Patents USCOMM-DC 60376-P69 u.s. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE: I969 o-sss-au =oRM P0-1OS0 (10-69) 

